rodney's blog

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) held a Cyber Security and Broadband Workshop to examine the role of cybersecurity as it develops a National Broadband Plan. According to FCC Commissioner Meredith Attwell Baker, "Network security is the most critical issue facing our communications industry."

National Cyber Security Awareness Month was kicked-off on October 1st at an event held in Washington, D.C., attended by Secretary Napolitano from the Department of Homeland Security and other dignitaries. The event, orchestrated by the National Cyber Security Alliance, brought together partners from government, industry, and academia to declare their commitment to advancing safety and security in cyberspace.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has announced plans to hold three roundtables that will focus on consumer privacy issues. According to the announcement, the purpose of the series of roundtables are:

. . . to explore the privacy challenges posed by the vast array of 21st century technology and business practices that collect and use consumer data. Such practices include social networking, cloud computing, online behavioral advertising, mobile marketing, and the collection and use of information by retailers, data brokers, third-party applications, and other diverse businesses. The goal of the roundtables is to determine how best to protect consumer privacy while supporting beneficial uses of the information and technological innovation.

Three provisions of the PATRIOT Act set to expire at the end of this year have been the focus of recent hearings and intense policy debates. Critics were anxious to learn whether or not the Obama administration would support their renewal given the privacy and civil liberty concerns that have proven contentious in this piece of post 9-11 legislation. However, the administration told the Senate Judiciary Committee that it wants the provisions to be continued, although they are open to changes. The provisions set to expire include the so-called "roving wiretap" statute that allows government bugs on any phone used by the person being tapped, the broadening of law enforcement access to library and bookstore records, and the "lone-wolf" provision that applies to any non citizen suspected of engaging in or preparing for international terrorism who is not affiliated with a known terrorist group.

The House Science Research Subcommittee unanimously approved legislation this week that would support cybersecurity research and development. The bill would require the Department of Defense, Department of Homeland Security, and the National Science Foundation to work together to develop a long-range research and development agenda that would authorize grants and scholarships for training in cybersecurity.

Providing context to the committee's markup of the "Cybersecurity Research and Development Amendments Act of 2009", Chairman Daniel Lipinski (Dem., IL) remarked:

The Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) released its Privacy Report Card for the Obama Administration with the following results:

• Consumer Privacy: Incomplete
• Medical Privacy: A-
• Civil Liberties: C+
• Cybersecurity: B

EPIC's grades were based on a review of the Administration's privacy initiatives. EPIC cited the vacancies on the Federal Trade Commission, the continuation of the Bush Administration's policies on the use of the "state's secrets privilege," the Department of Homeland Security's support for PASS ID, and privacy exemptions for social networking services as areas where the Administration has failed to protect privacy.

According to the report card:

The 2009 National Campus Safety and Security Conference, hosted by the National Association of College and University Business Officers, was held on June 27th in Boston, Massachusetts. The conference provided some insights into the outcomes of the project which is supported by EDUCAUSE and other higher education associations.